Foundation and housing for railway signal apparatus



I. S. HOBSON. FOUNDATION AND HOUSING FOR RAILWAY SIGNAL APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED MAII. 25. I920- 1,342,962. Patented June 8, 1920.

Fig. 3.

Tnenfor n 6.Hob5ol 1 Joh UNETED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN S. I-IOBSON, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO MASSEY CONCRETE PRODUCTS COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF WEST VIRGINIA.

FOUNDATION AND HOUSING FOR RAILWAY SIGNAL APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 8, 1920.

Application filed March 25, 1920. Serial No. 368,811.

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN S. HoBsoN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Foundation and Housing for Railway Signal Apparatus, of which the following is a full, clear, concise, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification.

My invention relates to a foundation and housing for railway signal apparatus, and the object of my invention is to provide a generally improved combination foundation and housing of this class that is capable of being employed in connection with the several standard styles and makes of railway signal poles or other structures used in railway signaling, and which is so constructed that the batteries and appurtenant signal equipment contained within the foundation and housing are effectually protected from injury by reason of water finding its way into the interior of the housing.

Specifically, my present invention consists in certain. improvements, particularly applicable to the combination foundation and housing for railway signal apparatus described in Patent No. 1,325,829, granted December 23, 1919, to John L. Campbell, of El Paso, Texas. In the accompanying drawings illustrating my invention,

Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view of the combination foundation and housing, this view illustrating one style of signal pole mounted thereon, said signal pole being illustrated in fragmentary side elevation;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary top plan view of the foundation and housing, with the signal pole removed therefrom and a portion of the concrete of which the foundation is constructed broken away to illustrate in top plan. one of the cast metal inserts provided by the present invention;

Fig. 3 is a' side elevational view of the upper portion of the foundation and housing, illustrating another type of signal pole mounted thereon;

Fig. 45 is a fragmentary elevational view taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a view in perspective of one of the cast metal inserts;

Fig. 6 is an isolated fragmentary sectional view of one of the inserts, illustrating how one of the signal pole retaining bolts cooperates therewith;

Fig. 7 is a top plan view generally similar to Fig. 2, illustrating a signal pole of the type shown in Fig. 1, mounted on the foundation; and

Fig. 8 is a view similar to Fig. 7, illustrating a signal pole of the type shown in Fig. 3, mounted on the foundation.

Similar characters of reference refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

In the drawings reference character 10 illustrates a monolithic concrete foundation and housing, which incloses the space 11, within which is disposed suitable shelving 12, to support the usual batteries and their appurtenant equipment. The ground surface is indicated at 13. Access to the batteries and other equipment contained within the housing is had through a manhole 14, which is provided with a pressed metal cover 15 and a wooden frost cover 16, the latter being supported on an inwardly projecting annular ledge formed in the manhole, as shown. The usual trunking outlet is illustrated at 17 At the left hand side thereof the structure 10 is provided with an upwardly projecting portion 18, the top wall of which is provided with a flat upper surface and is of greater thickness than the other walls of the structure to provide a substantial support for a single pole to be mounted upon the portion 18 of the structure 10. Embedded in the upper wall of the portion 18 of the foundation and housing structure 10 are the pipe 19 and the pipes 20, 20, which constitute conduits for conductors, leading up into a signal pole disposed upon the housing and foundation, as will be presently explained. When using a signal pole of the type shown in Fig. 1, one or both of'the pipes 20 are employed, and when using a signal pole of the type shown in Fig. 3 the pipe 19 is used as a conduit for the conductors. When pipes 20 are not in use they are preferably closed by threaded plugs 20 and when pipe 19 is not in use the upper end thereof is closed by cap 19*. It will be noted that the upper ends of pipes 20, 20 are flush with the upper surface of the foundation, whereas the upper end of pipe 19 projects a substantial distance above the upper surface of the foundation. The purpose of this arrangement will presently appear.

Embedded in the portion 18 of the foundation and having their upper surfaces substantially flush with the upper surface of the foundation are the cast metal inserts 21,

. 21, one of which is illustrated in detail in Fig. 5. Each of these inserts consists of an integral hollow casting provided with a botthe axes of their respective slots 22 coinci- 20 dent with lines perpendicular to each other intersecting at the axis of the pipe 19. The purpose of this arrangement is to permit signal poles of various sizes, and other poles or structures used in railway signaling, to be mounted on the housing and foundation structure.

The form of signal pole shown in Fig. 7 comprises the hollow signal mechanism case. A, provided with a bolting flange B. hen this formof signal pole is used the several bolts 23, 23 are slipped to the outer ends of their respective slots, and the mechanism case A is positioned as shown in Fig. 7, and is retained in position 'by suitable nuts cooperating with bolts 23, said bolts passing through the bolting flanges B of the mechanism case as shown in Fig. 1.

The form of signal pole shown in Figs. 3 and 8 comprises merely the mast D provided at its lower end with a bolting flange E. In order to secure this form of pole upon the foundation the several bolts 23 are slipped toward the inner ends of their respective slots 22 and the signal mast is placed directly over the conduit 19. The bolts' of course extend through the bolting flange of the pole and the pole is secured in position by suitable nuts cooperating with bolts 23. Inasmuch as the conduit 19 projects a substantial distance above the upper surface of the foundation, it will be understood that any water finding its Way the pipe 19.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A structure of the class described, comprising a closed concrete Vault provided with a horizontal plane upper surface adapted to have a signalpole or similar structure mounted thereon, an aperture in said horizontal upper surface, means whereby poles of a plurality of sizes may be secured in position on said plane upper surface, said means comprising a plurality of hollow cast metal inserts, each of said insertsprovided with a longitudinal slot-in its upper wall, said inserts being embedded in the'concrete of the vault with their respective'upper surfaces substantially flush with the aforesaid horizontal plane unner surface of the vault, the respective longitudinal slots of said inserts being disposed coincident with radii of a circle having the middle of said aperture as its center, to

get-her with bolts cooperating with said inserts and. adapted to be adjusted in said longitudinal slots.

2. Astructure of the class described, comprising a foundation of concrete, provided with a horizontal plane upper surface adapted to have a signal pole mounted thereon, and means whereby a plurality of sizes of signal poles or similar structures may be mounted on said foundation, said means comprising a plurality of metal inserts embedded in'the concrete, with their upper surfaces substantially flush with the aforesaid plane horizontal surface of the foundation, each of said inserts being provided with a longitudinal slot and disposed with the axis of said-slot coinciding with one of a plurality of-straight lines radiating from a common center, together with fastening bolts cooperating with said inserts, said bolts being capable of adjust ment in-said longitudinal slots. In witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe my name this 20th da of March 1920.

- J HN s. noBsoN.

Witnesses:

EDNA V. GUSTAFSON,

JULIA VxIvns. 

